Joe Mullen
Joe Mullen has an interesting story. Despite a stellar college career, Mullen went undrafted because he was small and American and not from a traditional hockey producing market.
The Blues took a chance on him and it ended up paying off. In a twist of history, Mullen actually gave up an opportunity to be on the 1980 Miracle on Ice team to turn pro. That clearly helped his bank account, but it would have been interesting to see him on that team.
For whatever reason, Mullen was still somewhat held back when he came to the Blues. He played just over half a season in both years, but still scored 59 points his rookie season.
In his first full season with the Blues, Mullen racked up 41 goals and 85 points. The following season, he got up to 92 points with 40 goals.
Mullen was on his way to being a star for the Blues. Then, the Blues do what they do.
Ownership was in flux and the payroll needed to be trimmed. Mullen was shipped to Calgary.
Despite the fact Mullen was over halfway to another 90-plus point season, the Blues traded him off. They sent him, Terry Johnson and Rik Wilson for Eddy Beers, Charles Bourgeois and Gino Cavallini.
Cavallini was a fun player, but that’s not a replacement for Mullen. Mullen went on to three-straight more seasons of 40 or more goals and had a 113 point season in there as well.
The only positive thing about that trade was that it somewhat greased the tracks for the eventual Brett Hull trade a couple years later. Other than that, the Blues lost out on a Hall of Fame player.